The frustration with Ken Whisenhunt’s performance as Cardinals coach is understandable. The call for his job? Far too premature.

Achieving success as an NFL head coach is far more of a crapshoot than people believe. Great coordinators don’t always turn into great leaders, just as inexperience doesn’t necessarily equate to failure. Success is as much about general managers, quarterbacks and luck as it is about X’s and O’s.

Why be so eager to replace a coach that was the CEO of a team that played in the Super Bowl (it wasn’t all Kurt Warner) with one likely to have an unproven NFL track record? …

The shelf life of an NFL coach is about as long as a case of canned yams. Of the 32 current head coaches in the NFL, only eight were hired before Whisenhunt. Two — Pittsburgh’s Mike Tomlin and San Diego’s Norv Turner — were hired the same season. …

In many ways, Whisenhunt’s path has paralleled Lovie Smith’s. Whisenhunt went 40-40 in his first five seasons and is 4-7 in his sixth. Smith went 45-35 in his first five seasons as Bears coach and started 4-7 in his sixth. Both coaches went to the playoffs in Years 2 and 3 and each had a Super Bowl loss.

On Nov. 30, 2009, the day after the Bears lost to the Vikings to fall to 4-7, a headline in the Chicago Sun-Times said, “Yet another debacle casts even more doubt on Bears’ coaching staff.” The writer wondered “if the Bears are capable of coaching their way out of this mess.”

Smith has gone 30-18 since. …

- In my colleague Dan Bickley’s column that discussed trading Larry Fitzgerald, one line really defined the Cardinals’ ills: Since being drafted in 2004, the wide receiver has played for 13 different quarterbacks.

Thirteen! …

- Overheard on ESPN’s “Mike and Mike in the Morning” from Mike Greenberg:

“Arizona has a playoff-caliber defense. They have some parts on offense; they have as bad a quarterback situation as there is in the league. If you're Ken Whisenhunt, are you calling Michael Vick? Are you calling Alex Smith?” …

I’m not Ken Whisenhunt, but I’m calling Alex Smith. …

- A better discussion is if the Cardinals have been receiving first-round production out of their first-round picks in the last eight years. Here they are since 2005: Antrel Rolle, Matt Leinart, Levi Brown, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, Beanie Wells, Dan Williams, Patrick Peterson and Michael Floyd. …

- Two things you can count on when the delightful Al McCoy does play-by-play for a Suns road game: a quality and professional broadcast and a subtle jab about the location of his seat if it’s located too high in the arena. Makes me laugh every time. …

- I respect what the Suns are doing with their money-back-guarantee game against the Mavericks on Thursday because it’s one of the few times fans have the opportunity to be in control of their sports experience.

I also don’t believe there is much inherent risk to the decision. When all is said and done, people usually don’t put the work in to get the their money back, which involves mailing the ticket stub and a completed form (postmarked by Dec.31) and then waiting six to eight weeks to get it back.

Additionally, studies have shown people tend to be far more honest than we give them credit for in these situations. Odds are good they’ll have an enjoyable experience at the game and won’t demand a refund. …

- Lost in the shuffle of ASU’s 41-34 Territorial Cup victory over Arizona were the contributions of the Sun Devils’ Jon Mora, who kicked two field goals. Many don’t realize he was once a walk-on at Arizona who was deemed not good enough to kick there and left.

The sophomore won the job mid-season over ASU’s Alex Garoutte and converted nine of 12 field goals. Mora went to Mountain Pointe but has roots in Costa Rica.

- Final word:

“I think of him as Jackie Robinson. … What bothers me is that people think he just helped the players. He helped the entire industry. Players didn't know anything about their rights before this. And owners didn't realize how valuable they were without him. There were no padded (outfield) walls. No safety measures. The one thing that's always going to bother me is that he didn't get the credit for the sport being where it is while he's alive.” Joe Morgan to USA Today, on the death of Marvin Miller, the first executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association.

Reach Boivin at paola.boivin@arizonarepublic.com and follow her on Twitter at Twitter.com/PaolaBoivin. Listen to her on pros2preps.com’s “Big Guy on Sports” on with Brad Cesmat every Monday at 12:30 p.m. on XTRA Sports 910.

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